You should have seen the bottom crust before I filled it. It was perfect, absolutely flawless. I'm not the only one who thought so either. Someone else at the class commented on it first, causing me to reply, JOKINGLY, that if you can't do something perfectly the first time, you shouldn't do it at all. Does it sound to you like patience is a strength of mine?
Later in the day I had a texting conversation with a very dear friend of mine. (She doesn't read my blog, so she won't know I made part of the convo public unless you tell her.)
HER: ...sometimes answers don't come as soon as we would like them to.
ME: Yeah, I'm becoming pretty familiar with that concept. I can't think of anything since Matt died that has come when I wanted it to.
HER: I hate lessons in patience.
ME: Totally! How do you know when you've learned it?!
HER: ...that whole enduring to the end crap sure does get exhausting to think about...if you figure out life before me...please share.
ME: That seems too big. How 'bout I just let you know when I figure out the banjo?
It's hidden in a lot of fluff, but that's the point of my post today: Life's lessons. How do we know when we've learned them? When the trials and challenges never seem to end, are we not catching on to the lesson? I'd really like to have your thoughts on this one.
6 comments:
Somehow I am not sure if it is that we don't get the lesson. I think it has to do with the same concepts that we need to learn the same principles of the Gospel in a repeated pattern. For some reason, we need to have the lessons pounded into us. Unfortunately sometimes the pounding certainly leaves us feeling a little sore. You know what, it might be more like a great workout, sore but good sore. I just think our mortal minds often can't understand. Just my thoughts... Mimi
PS. It is good to know how you are all doing. We still pray for you and the boys. We love you!
That is exactly what I said when Daniel got deployed again after only being home for 7 months! "what did I not learn last time that I had to go through another deployment?" I guess Heavenly Father wants me to be strong and realize I can do anything and everything, like move into a new house with four children! Daniel's Drill and I have become best friends! I just have to have my pictures on the walls and curtains over every windows!!! But man why is my husband not here to help me. Why do I have to go through this life alone most of the time? I am sure this is the same question you ask yourself. Just know that your example strengthens me. I think we all have a lot of lessons to learn, and they do not end when we pass on either, we keep learning throughout our entire existence, heck even Christ had lessons to learn in his life, and he was perfect! I have a long way to go before I am even close to being perfect!
I like the workout analogy...not that I would know much about that. ;) It is like He knows our limits when we don't and we just keep getting worked into the ground but when we work through it---it feels good! Then He brings on the next workout.
I told you about this earlier, but wanted to expound. A lady in sacrament bore her testimony today that she KNEW that God wouldn't let anything bad happen to her. She said with tears in her eyes that she KNOWS that if something bad was going to happen, God would intervene and stop it. I very rarely diliberately withhold my amen in a church meeting, but I sat there thinking, This is not just false (and I'm worried about when she learns otherwise) but its literally opposite to the whole point of life. I joked with my husband that I was going to give her your number, Brenda. Just like the Jaredites in their barges crossing the ocean, the fierce winds made the journey hell, but were the very thing that got them to the promised land. I imagine that the horribleness of the journey made them that much more happy when they arrived. Hang in there, Bren, Your life is a LIGHT to everyone around you even though it may not feel that way and you will come out on the other side of this with a hard-earned strength and brilliance that will blow your mind.
So was it really the perfect pie?? I wasn't able to go to the class, so you will have to share any tips you learned with me. :)
As far as learning my lesson, I was just thinking about this. Well something very similar to it. But what I got from it was, I didn't realize until much later what I had learned from that situation. Something bad happened to me about 5 years ago and its really only the last year I have really learned and appreciated the blessings that came from that. I now realize how much that experience taught me. But I had no idea while I was experiencing it or even when it was over. It was the time I spent reflecting about the situation when I realized how much I learned. So I think we go through life doing the best we possibly can during our trials, and everyone's best will be different just like everyone's trials will be different. Then at some point in our life we will look back and draw from the previous experience and what it taught us. But for me, I never realize the lesson while I am going through the trial.
I don't think it's always a matter of learning patience and submission from a trial, though I'm sure that's always a small part of it.
From my experience of losing my babies, I found that I was put in situations or I met people or had experiences that I never would have had if my babies had lived.
We would not have moved to Phoenix or to Russia or done two Master's programs back to back. We would not be here in Houston with this job. I would not know some of the most amazing families. I would not know certain things about myself or my husband. I would not have been there to support other women suffering the same loss.
I think Heavenly Father sometimes takes people we love away from us so He can implement another part of His plan for our lives.
All these things shall give thee experience and be for thy benefit, right?
(Sometimes that is a hard one to swallow!)
Post a Comment